Listen in as we talk with Dr. Jenny Reeder about the role of women in Mormon and Christian Science history. She explores similarities and differences that women and female leaders have experienced in the Mormon and Christian Science faith traditions. Hear about the legacy of Mormon leader Emma Smith as an expounder of scripture, in relation to Mary Baker Eddy as a biblical interpreter and religious leader. We’ll also explore the role of women as healers in both churches.

Podcast guest

Dr. Jenny Reeder is a nineteenth-century women’s historian with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She has co-edited two volumes—The Witness of Women: Firsthand Experiences and Testimonies of the Restoration and At the Pulpit: 185 Years of Discourses by Latter-day Saint Women. Reeder earned a PhD from George Mason University in American history, with an emphasis in women’s religious history, memory, and material culture. She received her MA from New York University in history, archival management, and documentary editing. In 2010, while researching for her dissertation on nineteenth-century religious women, she completed a fellowship with The Mary Baker Eddy Library.